USAID and Gates Foundation team up to promote digital gender equity in Africa and beyond

AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File

A collaboration between the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) seeks to advance "digital gender equality" globally, with millions of dollars in funding from both private and public sources allocated towards the initiative, primarily focused on Africa.

Vice President Kamala Harris has announced the launch of the Women in Digital Economy Fund, which will provide funding for organizations promoting digital gender equality in Africa and other parts of the world.

The initiative, which is being carried out in collaboration with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, will offer financial support to initiatives aimed at providing women with access to phones, developing "media literacy", and researching methods to address "social norms" in the technology industry, among other efforts.

“Working with Congress, USAID plans to commit up to $50 million in Gender Equity and Equality Action (GEEA) fund resources toward this effort over the next four years, subject to the availability of funds, and the Gates Foundation will commit $10 million, with at least half of each of these commitments focused on Africa,” USAID announced on Monday.

According to the development agency, this initiative presents a favorable occasion for collaboration between the public and private sectors. The fund will prioritize "women-led solutions, products, and tools" whenever feasible, as stated by USAID.

The initiative for "digital gender equity" is being launched concurrently with USAID's recently published "gender equality and women’s empowerment" framework, which includes a policy objective to provide access to abortion as a means of support globally.

According to the policy, one goal of USAID was to bring “improved access, quality, and use of health care for all individuals across the life course — including gender-diverse and LGBTQI+ individuals — with a particular focus on sexual and reproductive health and rights.

“USAID affirms that the promotion of the rights of gender-diverse individuals — those with a gender identity beyond the binary categories of man or woman — is integral to the advancement of gender equality,” the new framework stated.

This objective was part of a broader goal outlined in the USAID framework to enhance health services and ensure they offer integrated, client-centered, gender-affirming, and high-quality care that respects all individuals.

USAID previously supported the launch of “India’s first transgender clinic,” which provides “guidance and medication on hormone therapy and gender affirmation procedures.”